North Carolina Man 'Almost Went Crazy' After Huge Lottery Win

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A man in North Carolina is celebrating a massive win in the state lottery, one that he said was a long time coming.

"Sooner or later I knew I was going to win a big prize like this," said Fredrick French, of Charlotte.

French picked up his lucky $5 Lincoln scratch-off ticket from the Xpress Shop on Sunset Road, according to a release from the NC Education Lottery. He couldn't believe his luck when he quickly discovered he won $200,000, so much so that his wife had to help calm him down from the sudden excitement.

"I almost went crazy," he said. "She had to get me a bottle of water to help me calm down."

According to lottery officials, the Lincoln game launched in September with six prizes of $200,000.

"I actually thought there weren't any more of the top prizes left on that one," said French. "I guess I know now."

Lucky for him, there were still a couple of the top prizes left. One of the $200,000 prizes still remains to be claimed. French went to lottery headquarters to claim his own prize, leaving with a grand total of $142,501 after all required state and federal tax withholdings.

So what does he plan to do with his new winnings? He told lottery officials he hopes to pay off his house, buy his wife a new car and share some of the prize with his kids.